Twinkie's Dog Calendar

TWINKIE'S CALENDAR from Zazzle.com

A little reminder for my readers since my dog calendar sale will be ending on Monday. I'm ordering mine today. Ya never know what my family's planning for the weekend :) What I do know is that dog breed calendars are always welcome.

Tw-ink!

Frankie | A Chiweenie Small Dog Rescue

She's my new baby sissy. She joined the family only a few short months ago, in February. She was a huge surprise to me! After my recovery, I longed for somebody my size to play with and then, one day, ta-da! Mom comes home with THIS!

Isn't she adorable? BTW Frankie's possibly a Chiweenie, a Chihuahua/Weiner dog (Dachshund). Mom though it'd be funny to name her after a hot dog.  She was even smaller than I am--I am a tea cup Chihuahua. Mom warned me: "Twinkie, Frankie's going to grow. She's a baby now, but just wait. She won't stay like this forever." Who cares? I had a sister my size. Don't get me wrong, I love Linguini, the Dalmatian and German Shorthaired Pointer mix, but she's too laid back. She's ten years old. She doesn't want to play hard with me all day long like the Chiweenie does. So, I welcomed Frankie properly, ha ha!

Here's the story from what I heard from my mom. She was at a horse show (I will share horse show pictures later), watching my human sister compete, standing by a lady who was holding Frankie in her arms. "Oh, how adorable," Mom said and asked permission to snap photos. Glowing with excitement, she snapped the shots and was about to leave when the lady holding Frankie asked, "Could you hold her for me?" Mom gratefully obliged. She took Frankie in her arms. The lady wasted no time, "She's yours!" she exclaimed. "Huh?" Mom was shocked. Frankie was just out of the pound and she needed a home. The lady who was holding her, took her from the pound only to find her a home. "She's yours, if you want her," the lady said more hesitantly. Mom thought for a minute, especially about me. Frankie would find a home--she was too cute. It's easy to find homes for healthy pups. She felt bad. She prefers the "challenging" adoptions, duh, the ones most people avoid. Mom thought about me again, and the fact that I would most likely benefit from a play companion. "She's got a home then," she finally said, and Frankie came home!

Frankie, the Chiweenie, is not completely potty trained yet. I will share potty training tips soon. Every now and then we'll hear mom's exasperated voice: "Oh, no, Frankie. Not again." It's only been seven months though and my mom's patient. She too has fallen for my lovable sister. She's beautiful too. I love brindle coloring, don't you? I'm not jealous though, 'cause I know I'm the charming one. Frankie's the clown of the family. Every day she has a new "do". We never know which directions her ears will be pointing at.

Frankie's my sister, my friend, my Chiweenie, my hiking companion, my mischief buddy. I love Frankie with all my heart, even though she's already gotten waaaay bigger than me. As to how to potty train a puppy . . . I'll share my info if you share yours. 

Twink!

Rottweiler | Greyhound Mix Meets Dalmatian | German Pointer Mix

Creekhiker Meets Twinkietinydog

We've been hiking for years now with our friend, a Rottweiler and Greyhound mix, Mabel Lou (creekhiker.blogspot.com. Mabel is a large dog and she scares me sometimes. All she's got to do is accidentally step on my lil' tea cup Chihuahua self and I'm down to two legs... or fewer. Ha ha. On the other hand, she's a gentle giant, like my human brother. I can't help but trust her. She gently jumps around me being so careful. It's my sister Frankie, the Chiweenie, who's afraid of Mabel, but that's because Frankie's a pup and she likes to whimper often. She'll come around, she's almost there.

Here's what we did the other day with Mabel. We went to Starbucks, where all four of us (Linguini, Mable, Frankie, and I) took turns sharing some whipped cream. We chilled for a bit, giving our mothers an opportunity to catch up, knowing what was coming next.

At last, our human companions started to get up and we all got excited. We were going on a hike. Ya never know where these two will take you. We got ready for an adventure!

We ended up at Arroyo Seco (in English: Dry Stream) among frisbee golfers. Soon, we'd left the crowds behind, luckily I didn't get hit by any large flying objects, and found water! Granted, it was muddy and all black, because of the Station Fire and the mudslides following that, but we didn't care. The muddier the better, right? Apparently our mom didn't disagree since she was knee-deep in the mud herself.

We ran around, explored, chased each other, hiked some more, waded in the water, climbed rocks and logs....What a day!

Twink!

USC water polo

One of the Happiest Days of My Life

It's all because of Jordan, my human brother. I love Jordan. He's a giant. He's 6.6 and weighs about 250lbs of pure muscle power, yet he's so gentle with me. I'm not even afraid to roam around his size 16 shoes. He's so careful with me. I feel safe.

So, here's a little background. Jordan's been an athlete his entire life. He first became serious about a sport though, when he first started playing water polo. He SUCKED at first. He was slow...real slow. But he had a great coach, Coach B, who never let Jordan off the hook. He pressured him gently. By the end of his first year of playing polo, Jordan was one of the best players. The next year he got better, and better, he earned the All American title for several years in a row and won the CSI championship his last year in high school.

Then the recruiting started. USC wanted him and he eagerly accepter. USC has the best water polo program in the nation. What happens when you join the number one team in the country, coached by the number one coach also in the country? You sink or swim. Jordan worked hard for three years. He worked and worked, and finally, his last year he blossomed. Again, having suffered multiple serious personal and team setbacks, Jordan came through.

So, I woke up this morning to the following news. Jordan, MY brother, made MPSF player of the week. Of course he did. Not only did he score 4 goals, he also drew 5 ejections giving his team great advantages. What impressed me the most though? Jordan was playing hard but he was also being his team's cheer leader in between. He had the entire stadium in stitches, including our rivals' fans. That's my brother and that's why I love him. He's an optimist, a big, lovable teddy bear. Needless to say, Mom's crying tears of joy when she's not jumping around screaming. I better watch out for her today. She's out of control. I live in a very happy household where the people and the animals love and support one another.

Jordan Thompson Earns First MPSF Player of the Week Award

And before I go, you should all know by now, I'm Jordan's NUMBER 1 FAN!!! Twink!

Fight on! As they say at USC.

Rhodesian Ridgebacks and Dalmatian | German Shorthaired Pointer Mix

Hope after the Station Fire

It was a couple of weeks ago, my older sister's birthday. Daisy, aka Linguini (from the way her body moves side to side like a wet noodle) celebrated her 10th! Happy happy birthday, sis. Anyhow, since it was Linguini's festive day, our mom took her on a hike without us little guys (Chihuahua and Chiweenie alike), so that she'd feel special.

Daisy aka Linguini

Dalmatian/Short Haired Pointer mix

They joined their friends Hank and Sue (two enormous Rhodesian Ridgebacks) and off they went, deep into Angeles Crest National forest right in the middle of the burned areas.

Hank, Sue, the Rhodesian Ridgebacks, and Linguini

At first glance, the hike was going to be a sad one. Everything looked charbroiled and dead, but one just had to look a little closer. Yes, only a couple of weeks after the epic fire was finally put out, new signs of life.

When Mom and Linguini got home, we all squealed at the photos. Life is beautiful, isn't it? I was happy my sister got to have fun on her special day! She didn't have the easiest start in life either. Mom adopted her from a pound when she was really young. The pound told her that she's probably some type of Dalmatian/ German Shorthaired Pointer mix. When Linguini finally arrived at our home, she had a bad case of kennel cough, but she recovered. Everybody was pleased until she was attacked by one of the other dogs. She's lucky she survived. She's had a beautiful life since that incident and she DESERVES IT! 

HAPPY 10th BIRTHDAY, MY SISTER! AND MANY MORE

Dog Calendar

Zazzle is running a grrreat sale. I can't wait to get my paws on my calendar for such a great price. Use code: CALENDARS998
All dog calendar lovers like a dog breed calendars, especially when they feature a Chihuahua cutie like me.

TWINKIE'S CALENDAR from Zazzle.com

Twink!

Our Small Dog Rescue Barn

Ever since I got healthy, Mom started taking me out to the barn. I know I am a small dog, but I can run like the best of them!

                                                                                                                                               THE BARN

Our barn is special, in the sense that all horse riders can bring their dogs. Large, medium sized, tiny...they're all welcome; small dogs and large. I was welcomed too. The people already knew about me, so when I finally made my debut, they knew my name and they all took turns watching me and keeping this small dog warm by sticking me inside their sweaters. The other rescue dogs wanted to befriend me. Yay!

  My Barn Friends

To a visitor, our barn looks as if we're running a small dog rescue

At first, a day at the barn, running around with my new friends, meant a relapse and I'd stay in bed for a day or two. I was too tired to even eat. Mom would get really worried and contemplate not taking me again. "Please, please don't do that," I wanted to scream, but I didn't have to. She thought it over carefully and decided that this small dog should be exposed to whatever healthy dogs are exposed to, only, since I was so sickly and tine, in small increments.

By now, we can go to the barn and spend hours there. When I get tired, I just go up to my mom, turn my tail towards her, and wait. She always picks me up. I take a break to play with my small dog toys and then I'm off again. There's too much to do and see . Horses and small dogs everywhere, and nice animal lovers among them. It's heaven for me...and Frankie, and Daisy (my sisters).

Today, we were naughty. All three of us, disobeyed our mother and started goofing around in a coral. Now, I get it, she doesn't want us small dogs to get kicked by a horse, but we were safe. The coral was empty, what was she yelling to us for? I guess she loves us too much and too much love is a good thing. Twink!

I don't get to go riding often, but today was one of those rare days. I love to ride. I ride English, no stirrups, and sometimes bareback too. I may be a small dog but I'm skilled. I just wish they made a helmet small enough for me. I think that riding without a helmet is silly and irresponsible. I just don't have a choice. I've visited several online small dog boutiques and no helmet.

    Getting Ready to Ride Theodore

I'm so tired now. I need a nap. I'll probably sleep until tomorrow morning.